Sunday, May 14, 2006

Was Al Gore Brilliant on SNL? See It To Believe It

I just watched a clip of Al Gore on SNL last night and I'm in a state of mild shock. He gives a pretend speech as President of the United States and it was actually hip, and...well....it was brilliant. There was one comment at the very end that I would have yanked and that I'm sure the pious right wing desperados will jump on. But overall this was a stunning display of comedic writing and Al pulled it off. These mind-blowing moments are happening with increasing frequency now. Steve Colbert might have caused a comedic rush back towards courage - comedy that makes the leaders sweat. I doubt this Al Gore piece would have even been considered if Steve Colbert hadn't spoken truth to Bush a couple of weeks ago. The blow-back to a long repressive regime is in full force. Now you have Frank Rich calling the White House the real traitors. If you're a young person out there, remember these times. Keep a journal. Write your reactions and observations down. We are in a very dynamic phase in history right now. These are times of consequence. Watching Al Gore in a comedy skit that skewered the weasels in charge, was a loud and brilliant proclamation that America is not over. In fact, it's coming back and it's live from New York.

I think the last two little jokes about terrorism and Afghanistan and Iraq weren't funny considering what's going on there these days. But the glaciers and the commissioner of baseball thing and the price of gasoline? Oh my God, that was tremendous! The brilliance was in not just contrasting with Bush but having Al get into trouble with his agenda too, only different trouble.